A wet mist hangs over Coniston Water as Anna Friel settles down for a chat about her gripping new ITV thriller, Deep Water.
Behind her, brooding black clouds gather conspiratorially...
The impending storm accurately reflects the mood of this six-part drama set in the Lake District where explosive emotions lead to devastating consequences.
Get ready for illicit affairs, indecent proposals, broken marriages, missing children and terrible accidents in the freezing waters of the national park.
Anna plays Lisa, an over-stretched mum-of-three who runs a kennels business.
The spark has gone out of her marriage to taxi driver Joe, and we see her having a bathroom romp with her friend’s brother-in-law.
Her life spirals out of control when she is blamed for the disappearance of a local teenage girl.
‘Lisa has to live with the guilt and consequences of her actions,’ says Anna.
‘I think she’s bored with life - Lisa has grown apart from her husband and feels she’s been missing out on life.
'The story is partly about her finding some self-worth.’
A mother herself – to Gracie, 14, from a previous relationship with actor David Thewlis – Anna hopes lots of parents will be able to relate to her character.
‘It’s juggling balls, doing school runs, managing pets and trying to cook for your family,’ she explains.
‘How is that after 24 years of marriage? It doesn’t always look pretty with a bow on the top.’
Lisa’s infidelity is just one element of Deep Water’s murky pool of deceit and duplicity.
We also meet Roz (Little Boy Blue's Sinead Keenan), a cash-strapped physiotherapist who is offered financial assistance by a client – in return for certain favours.
‘Roz’s partner Winston has a gambling problem, they’ve lost everything,’ says Sinead.
‘It sets off a sequence of events which impacts on her life greatly.’
Then there’s wealthy Kate (Rosalind Eleazar), who lives in a huge house overlooking Windermere with her husband and two kids.
Attractive, successful and respected in the community, Kate seems to have the perfect life – but is it all a facade?
‘All may not be as it seems,’ hints Rosalind.
‘Kate has a protective mechanism.
'She and her husband put on a show, but their marriage is strained.’
The scene is set for a twist-filled drama that addresses everyday issues such as modern parenting, marital angst, sexual desires and the toxic emotional baggage that comes with keeping secrets.
‘Deep Water is empathetic to the struggles and hardships of being a woman,’ states Anna.
‘And sometimes these particular women make selfish decisions.’
